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Wednesday, 10 June 2015

Ferrari Porfirio Rubirosa's 500 Mondial

Porfirio Rubirosa's 500
Mondial revealed by ferrari :Maranello, 9 June – The Ferrari Classiche Department has
just completed the restoration of the 1954 Ferrari 500 Mondial Spyder PF
originally owned by Dominican gentleman driver Porfirio Rubirosa. A great
ladies’ man, the latter also dallied with some of the world’s most beautiful
women, not least Marilyn Monroe, Ava Gardner, Rita Hayworth, Veronica Lake, Kim
Novak, Eva Peron and Zsa Zsa Gabor who posed with him in the car. Rubirosa
drove the car in just a single international race at Santa Barbara in September
1954. Sporting the number 235, the 500 Mondial finished eighth overall and
second in its category but, by the end of the year, had been sold to American
John Von Neumann from Hollywood. One of the car’s fans was none other than
James Dean who stopped to admire it before a race and wanted to get behind its
wheel.

Second career.After its retirement, the car became a
collector’s item and changed hands several times. Its present owner, California
Tom Peck, sent it to the Ferrari Classiche Department for a full restoration
that included the installation of a new version of its original engine to
ensure it complied with its construction specifications and could thus be
issued with a Certificate of Authenticity. His ultimate goal, however, is
ambitious: to compete in the Concours d’Elegance at Pebble Beach in California,
in August. That prestige event was won in 2014 by the Ferrari 375 MM Coupé once
owned by film director Roberto Rossellini.

HISTORY

Victories.The 1954 Ferrari 500 Mondial Spyder PF’s finest racing
years came courtesy of Von Neumann who won two races in it at Santa Barbara in
1955 and then at Pomona before triumphing once again at Santa Barbara in 1956.
Van Neumann did not always drive the car himself but entered it in competitions
in the hands of other drivers. These included Richie Ginther who won at
Glendale and Sacramento three years before making his F1 debut with the
Scuderia Ferrari. Phil Hill, who went on to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans twice
and was F1 World Champion in 1961 with the Scuderia Ferrari, failed to complete
the Torrey Pines race in the car in 1956 as a result of an engine failure. In
1957, the car was sold to Lew Yates who took victory in a race at Hourglass
Field but retired it from competition at the end of the following season.

The first of these
cars was built by a young coachbuilder from Modena called Scaglietti and was
inspired by a design created by Dino Ferrari to freshen up the look of the old
166 given to him by his father. The models built for sale to the public were the
work of Pinin Farina who built around 15 of the spiders in all. Powered by a
2000 cc four-cylinder engine, this model acquitted itself very honourably
indeed in a whole host of races, topping its category in many.